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Boiled potatoes with veggies
Unfortunately my camera does this no justice. OK, maybe I just do not know how to use my camera. Regardless, the picture does not look nearly as good as these veggies did on my plate.
It was a cold, gray, and very windy night here in San Antonio, so something warm was certainly needed. The veggies looked very spring like, with bright oranges, reds and greens, but the potatoes offered a hearty fall feel.
Surprisingly I actually finished this dinner in 27 minutes, considering mid-stream I decided to take it a completely different direction. I had planned on mixing chili beans and a bunch of veggies together and topping them with mashed potatoes. For some reason the veggies did not seem to want beans mixed with them, opting for the potatoes I was boiling for the mash. I tested a potato and it was firm but cooked. I quickly pulled them off the stove, drained them, and tossed them in with the carrots, red bell pepper, and red onion I had cooking in a little olive oil, and went to work on my new plan.
Switching concepts in the middle can often be disastrous, but not tonight. My wife loved both the color and taste of these potatoes, and definitely wanted to have them in the future. Always a good sign.
Recipe
Bring about six cups water to a boil–enough to cover three medium potatoes cut into large cubes. Heat about one tablespoon olive oil over medium-low heat in a large frying pan. Once heated add the carrots and red onion. Once the carrots have softened up a bit throw in the red bell pepper. Let cook at a slow heat until the potatoes are ready to be added.
Once the boiling potatoes are firm but ready to eat–about eight minutes at full boil–drain them and add them to the veggie mix. Stir them in with the veggies to get any remaining oil coating them as well. Keep them at a low heat as you do not want to burn the dish.
Just at the point the potatoes started to stick to the bottom I used the tomato juice from a can of diced tomatoes I had used in the beans I was making. This kept the potatoes and other veggies from sticking, and gave the whole dish a very subtle tomato flavor. The potatoes really benefited from this addition. Since there were no dry spices in this dish, the potatoes ran the risk of being quite bland. A little fresh chopped cilantro and the remaining diced tomatoes in the last minute of cooking finished this dish off, both for color and flavor.
Ingredients
- 3 medium russet potatoes, cut in large cubes
- 6 cups water
- 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1/3 medium red onion, chopped
- 1/3 can of diced tomatoes, drained, with juice set aside
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro, chopped
Sides
I served this along with some canned food, which certainly made the dinner go faster. I mixed two cans of Bush’s Mild Chili Beans, one can unsalted corn, and 2/3 can diced tomatoes. I threw about a teaspoon each of cumin, ancho chili powder, and garlic powder to change the pre-spiced chili beans up a bit. Cooked until heated and served alongside the potatoes and veggies.
